Prenatal and Childhood Exposure to Flame Retardant (PBDE) Impairs Neurobehavioral Development

Lasting Impacts: Pre- and Postnatal PBDE Exposures Linked
 to IQ Deficits Feb 1, 2013 Environmental Health Perspectives http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/2013/02/121-a58/
 
[Excerpted] The largest study to investigate the effects of human exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) flame retardants reports evidence of impaired neurobehavioral development in connection to both prenatal and childhood exposures [EHP 121(2):257–262; Eskenazi et al.]. Associations were greatest for attention, fine motor coordination, and cognition in school-age children. 

The study focused on chemicals associated with pentaBDE, a mixture of PBDEs that was used in polyurethane foam padding in furniture and infant products manufactured before 2005. These flame retardants can be released into home environments throughout products’ life spans, and children are disproportionately likely to be exposed to them through hand-to-mouth activity. PBDEs are chemically similar to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which are associated with similar neurodevelopmental impairments....

Majia here: INSANE. Better living through chemistry is going to ensure our extinction (or at least, degradation of our genome)!